Old Major as a Piglet
by helenNOYB
Summary: The story of how Willingdon Beauty got to Manor Farm.


"Come on, Willingdon. Time for bed." Willingdon's mother said. At that time, Willingdon Beauty, the boar, didn't have the nickname Old Major, for he wasn't on Mr. Jones' farm. He had been born on Ashelron Farm, and his mother was still with him.

"Beasts of England, beasts of Ireland, beasts of every land or clime," Willingdon's mother began to sing, as Willingdon lay in the haystack, eyes closed, listening to the soft sound of his mother's voice. Before his mother had reached the second verse, Willingdon was already sleeping.

When Willingdon woke up, he saw his mother gathering some corn into a burlap sack. He trotted up to his mother and asked "What are you doing, mama?" and the words echoed through the barn. Willingdon's mother was startled at the sudden noise, and stared at him, clearly annoyed. "Speak quietly," she said, "you'll wake Mr. Jenkins."

"But what are you doing?" Willingdon whispered.

"I'm packing some food." His mother replied, putting some more corn into another sack.

"But why? Where are we going?"

"We're leaving this farm. I overheard Mr. Jenkins, saying that we're next."

"You mean we're going to be chopped?" There was a look of fear on Willingdon's face. He had seen the knife that Mr. Jenkins used to kill pigs. It was huge, and Mr. Jenkins sharpened it every Saturday. He was told never to go near him when he was carrying the knife, and he obeyed that rule, for he knew what would happen if he didn't.

"Yes, Willingdon. Now come along. We must leave before Mr. Jenkins wakes up." His mother answered, and gave a sack of corn to Willingdon. Willingdon held the sack between his teeth and followed his mother, who moved a board in the corner of the barn, to reveal a crack in the wall, that was just big enough for him and his mother to squeeze through, and get out of the barn.

As the two boars trotted towards the gate, they heard the backdoor of the house open, and Mr. Jenkins walked out. He was a short man, with grey hair and a bald spot on his head. He was still in his bathrobe, but he was carrying the great big knife. He held the knife up, and was walking toward the boars menacingly. When she saw this, Willingdon's mother dropped the corn and squealed at Willingdon, "Run, Willingdon. Run as fast as you can! Don't stop until you are passed the gate, and at the corner of the road!" and she ran dangerously towards Mr. Jenkins, making herself his target, and giving Willingdon a chance to run for his life.

Willingdon ran as fast as he could, but then he heard a terrible noise. Mr. Jenkins had caught up with his mother, and he stopped to see what was happening. Suddenly remembering what his mother said, he ran until he was at the gate. The gate was big, but there was just enough room below it for Willingdon to squeeze through, and get on the other side. When he looked back, he saw nothing, and heard nothing. Then he looked into the window of Mr. Jenkins' kitchen, he noticed that he was still holding the knife, which had blood on it. After seeing this, he continued to run, holding back tears, but sniffling a little. When he got far enough that he didn't see Ashelron Farm anymore, he stopped, and realized that he was very hungry. He didn't have breakfast, but when he looked in the sack, there was only 1 cob of corn. The rest of it had fallen out when he was running. Too tired to go back and collect the corn, Willingdon ate the cob and trotted along the dirt road, until he saw another farm. Right at the gate of the farm stood a man, who took notice of Willingdon as he walked closer to the gate. The man opened up the gate, and stood at the end of it, holding it open to Willingdon, who was thinking whether it was safe for him to go into the farm. He reminded himself that he had nowhere to go, and since the man was offering him a place to stay, he might as well take it. When he was inside the farm, and heading toward the barn, the man said "Welcome to Manor Farm."

As Willingdon trotted towards the farm, he wondered how long it would be before he would be chopped here. Would he have to run away again? Did the farmer know who Mr. Jenkins was? Would he take him back to Mr. Jenkins? Many questions filled Willingdon's head, and he was unsure of anything.

When Willingdon trotted into the barn, he saw that many of the animals were already awake, and were watching him with curiosity. He figured the first thing to do was to introduce himself. "Hello," he said to the donkey, "My name is Willingdon. Who are you?"

"Benjamin." The donkey replied with no interest. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm from Ashelron Farm, and then when I was trotting along the road, a man opened the gate, and offered me to come in. What was his name?"

"Mr. Jones. He's our master of this farm. He's the one who owns Manor Farm, and the one who feeds us."

"Does he chop often?"

"You mean chop us? Well, if he let you in, then you will probably get a chance to live. At Manor Farm, you obey your master to get the food and shelter you need to survive, nothing more, nothing less."

Hearing this, Willingdon calmed down, but thought about what Benjamin said about obeying his master. It reminded him of the stories his father used to tell him about how one day, a rebellion would happen, and then everyone would get an equal share of everything. When Willingdon had asked him why they didn't start the rebellion, his father had said that there weren't enough animals for it to happen, and that getting food and a place to stay was all there is to an animal's life. Then, three days later, he had passed away. After that, Willingdon often wondered if one day, there really would be a rebellion, and what it would be like to care for a farm, knowing that all of the hard work and results would be for the animals only. That everyone would get an equal share, and nothing would be wasted on the humans who gave them much more work than food.

That night, he had dreamed of a day where he was the one who brought the rebellion on, who sent the message about how unfair it was for the animals who worked hard, only to give almost all the proceeds to the humans, who barely did any work. In his dream, he heard a familiar, soft voice, singing 'Beasts of England'. The voice belonged to his mother. And in this dream, he listened carefully to the words of the song, realizing what the song had been about. And when he woke up, he knew that he indeed, was going to deliver the message of the rebellion to all the animals, and teach them the song. Then one day, the rebellion would happen, and the animals would be free from the humans at last.


End file.
